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Politics : Liberalism: Do You Agree We've Had Enough of It? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (129110)	4/6/2012 8:06:27 AM
From: TideGlider	6 Recommendations Respond to of 224769

Hot Air Blog: Mitt Romney’s marvelous speech H/T Paul Smith Having written about the subtext of Pres. Obama’s Tuesday speech to news editors, it is worth looking at the speech likely GOP nominee Mitt Romney gave in the same venue on Wednesday. As reported at National Journal: “Nancy Pelosi famous [sic] said that we would have to pass Obamacare to find out what was in it,” Romney said. “President Obama has turned that advice into a campaign strategy: He wants us to re-elect him to find out what he will actually do. “With all the challenges the nation faces, this is not the time for President Obama’s hide-and-seek campaign,” he added. Romney argued he presents a stark contrast, boldly laying out his own agenda to solve the country’s litany of problems. That was no more true than when he focused on entitlement spending, an issue Obama has attacked Romney on for adopting the budget proposal put forward by Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wisc. The plan, the most prominent feature of which includes plans to convert Medicare into a premium-support model, polls poorly with the public, and is clearly an issue the president will highlight ad naseum through November. But rather than distance himself from Ryan, he resolutely defended the House budget chairman, even praising him by name for having “the courage to offer serious solutions to the problems we face.” And he went on then offensive, accusing Obama of damaging Medicare first. Romney adopted the Democrats’ own attack against Republicans, saying that the president “has taken a series of steps that end Medicare as we know it.” From this speech, folks on the left see Romney taking Obama’s bait — and that is not an entirely unfair assessment, merely an incomplete one. National Journal reports the Ryan plan polls badly based on its own poll, with an incomplete, misleading question. Nevertheless, given Democrats’ past success with Mediscare campaigns, it is not surprising some are licking their chops today. However, the left is also missing the subtext of Romney’s speech, which reflects hard-headed realism. It reflects realism about our grave and growing debt problem (even if the Ryan plan is insufficient, it is necessary). It also reflects realism about the general election campaign to come. The Democrats intend to demagogue the Ryan plan and hang it around the neck of the GOP nominee, regardless of the identity of the nominee or his position on the Ryan plan. Romney knows this. The establishment media, which has already allied itself with gross fiscal irresponsibility, will gleefully assist Team Obama in this campaign. Indeed, Obama’s demagoguery got a standing ovation from a packed house of news editors, while a much smaller crowd of journos gave Mitt Romney the polite golf clap. Romney knows this, too. In 1996 (surely one of Obama’s models for a Democrat seeking reelection), GOP nominee Bob Dole ran away from the efforts of Newt Gingrich and the GOP Congress to bring the budget under control (even as Newt was driving Bill Clinton to sign welfare reform into law). This year, things could be different. Paul Ryan is probably a more stable ally now than Newt was then (or now). Moreover, even Obama’s budget director has warned that our debt is “serious and ultimately unsustainable.” On the other hand, it may be — especially if the economy were to perk up between now and November — that Democratic demagoguery on entitlements can succeed again. But Romney’s speech suggests he recognizes he cannot afford to avoid the good fight, because Democrats and the media will surely fight the bad one. hotair.com

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (129110)	4/6/2012 8:35:48 AM
From: TideGlider	2 Recommendations Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 224769

Jobs walkup: Looking for signs of an economic rebound By James O'Toole \| CNNMoney.com – 45 minutes ago The government on Friday will release its March jobs report, a crucial measure of the health of the economy. Economists surveyed by CNNMoney expect the report to show that employers added 200,000 jobs in March, and that the unemployment rate fell by 0.1% to 8.2%. In February, the U.S. added 227,000 jobs, and a fourth straight month of job growth above 200,000 would add further credence to the belief that the economy is on the road to recovery. Friday's report comes following labor market data released earlier this week that offered some positive signs. On Thursday, the Labor Department reported that 357,000 people filed for their first week of unemployment benefits last week, keeping such filings around their lowest level since April 2008. A day prior, payroll-processor ADP said the private sector added 209,000 jobs in March. Unemployment rate: How low can it go? The economy needs about 125,000 new jobs each month just to keep the unemployment rate steady. To fully dig out of the jobs hole left by the financial crisis, it needs far more. U.S. stock markets won't be able to react to the report until Monday, since they are closed for Good Friday. But Treasury market trading will take place through noon ET.